Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
GREENWOOD, Ben W.
GREENWOOD, Ben W. (Dubuque, IA, Apr. 3, 1933--Dubuque, IA, June 5, 2012) The son of Gladys (Phillips) Greenwood, Ben married Rosemary C. Arthofer on June 10, 1961; she preceded him in death on Oct. 15, 1999.
Ben loved country music for over 60 years and played every honky tonk and dance hall in the tri-state area and made many musician friends. Ben played in several bands including the Greenwood Brothers, Butch and the Drifters, and The Country Express. He started playing the guitar at age 14. He influenced his two younger brothers, Harold and Bobby; sons, Mike and Tom; and nephew Steve Greenwood into the same direction of becoming musicians. On Sundays, he could be found on the river with his family.
He owned Greenwood Standard Service Station on Ninth Street and Central Avenue from 1963 to 1970. He then worked at the Dubuque Packing Co. from 1970 until he retired in 1991. Ben wasn't a person to sit around, so he went back to work as a security guard at US Bank until 2006. He never called in a sick day at the Dubuque Packing Co. or US Bank.